Larry and Vicki Palur were honored in 2009 by Ohio Representative, Patrick Tiberi.
Larry and Vicki, along with their three children (Erin, Josh, and Kayla) began the foster/adoption process in 1999. In 2001, they received an offering of four siblings who were in need of a permanent home. They welcomed Alicia, Shane, Kyle and Bradley with open arms. These children had two other brothers who were already placed with another couple in the area. When asked by the caseworker if they would be amenable to visits between the four siblings and their brothers, they decided it would be natural to blend the two nuclear families into an extended family.
In 2004, they met Sara. Sara had many medical challenges and was not expected to live to see her 3rd birthday. In spite of that news, the Palurs applied to adopt her, believing that every child deserves to be loved and cared for. In 2005, her sister Charlotte was born. After working so hard to keep the first sibling group together, they could not think of separating Sara and Charlotte. They adopted both girls together in 2005. Sara is a happy, feisty 2nd grader and Charlotte is set to begin Kindergarten this year.
The couple share the mission and philosophy of CCAI. They are “dedicated to raising awareness about the millions of children around the world in need of permanent, safe, and loving homes and to eliminating the barriers that hinder these children from realizing their basic right of a family.” Every child deserves a home and a family. Both are dedicated self-proclaimed adoption advocates and never miss an opportunity to encourage others to foster and/or adopt. In the near future, Vicki would like to continue working towards creating a support group and respite resource for foster and adoptive families in their home county.
“Out of the many awards I’ve received, the one that means the most to me is the Angel in Adoption award. This award is truly a highlight of my continued effort and hard work to move foster children to adoption in permanent homes. Thank you, CCAI.”
-Judge Peter Sakai, 225th District Court, Bexar County, San Antonio, TX
“Since receiving the award we have expanded twice to represent even more children. We often look back on the award and remember how important it was to our morale as a young office just starting out and doing things a bit differently than everyone else. One of the highlights of the award ceremony was actually the day after when we got to meet with Representative Wexler in his office. It was a rare opportunity to discuss children’s issues one on one with a member of Congress. Both Representative Wexler and the CCAI encouraged us to keep on fighting as hard as we can for permanent homes for foster children. We continue to strive to deserve the award the CCAI bestowed on us every time we go to court on behalf of an abused child.” -The Foster Children’s Project, Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County, West Palm Beach, FL
Each year, CCAI sponsors Angels in Adoption™, our signature public awareness program, which provides a unique opportunity for Members of Congress to honor an individual or entity that has made an extraordinary contribution on behalf of children in need of homes.These heroes hail from all 50 states and the District of Columbia and represent the wide spectrum of individuals involved in the adoption and foster care process. Because of this program, over 1600 “Angels” have come to Washington in celebration of adoption and left with a renewed excitement of all that adoption makes possible.
In addition, CCAI recognizes the work of a select number of “National Angels in Adoption.” As the name implies, a “National Angel” is someone whose impact on foster care or adoption is nation or worldwide. Previous National Angels in Adoption™ winners include: Muhammad Ali, First Lady Laura Bush, Patti LaBelle, Jane Seymour, Dave Thomas of Wendy’s, Antwone Fisher, Alonzo Mourning, and Bruce Willis.
